keep a low profile. There was already a long line of dolled-up patrons waiting outside the entrance where a couple of bouncers and a hostess stood. The two-story building had a rough black stone exterior which made it look gothic. Even the doorway into the building had wrought iron fixtures which reminded me of a medieval castle at night.
The hostess standing near the door was holding an iPad, and she had dead straight blond hair, wearing an electric-blue Herve Leger dress. I walked past the line, and straight up to the hostess to give her my name, but as soon as her eyes met mine, she nodded and said, “You need to go up to level two. I hope you have your pass and identification.” I nodded back to her. She tilted her head towards one of the two bouncers on her right side. “Clarence, you will need to escort her to the elevator and up to two, but you will need to see Lucille first.” A huge man with a buzz cut and wearing a very smart suit, nodded back to the blond.
“Follow me,” he said, his voice low and gruff. The queue began to erupt in to sounds of boos and hisses, but as the blond lifted her head to look at them, they instantly silenced. Not the type of establishment that tolerated anything less than classy behavior.
I started following the huge bouncer called Clarence. “Once you are finished up top, feel free to check out this level’s jazz bar, or perhaps the dance bar in the basement level,” Clarence said as I kept pace behind him. He then stopped and turned, looking back at me, making sure I understood what he just said. I smiled up to the man with the towering wide body.
“Oh, sure. Sounds good. I will.”
He half laughed as he turned back down the hall and continued to walk. He led me down a side hall way to an adjoining room where a woman sat behind a table with a laptop and a scanning device, next to a set of gold-trimmed elevator doors.
Really – gold-trimmed elevators doors?
“Miss Ross I presume?” she said, watching me walk towards her. The girl, who looked only a few years older than me, had a very short and edgy blond bob with striking cat-like eyes and a round face. She was wearing black pants and a white vest top. I was sure she noticed the uneasiness in my stride as I came towards her. “Or perhaps it’s OK to call you Miss Rossi?” My eyes swelled at her knowledge as I came to a standstill at her table. “It’s alright darling, there aren’t any secrets here. But I’ll pretend if you want.” She looked me up and down. “Identification please.” She certainly followed procedure, just like Josh said she would. I handed her my New York city license with my real details on it, obviously no surprise to her. “So Big Joe’s daughter is in our club. This is a treat. Though I must say Lenorah, you are every bit as beautiful as the pictures I’ve seen of you.”
Pictures?
I tried to respond but couldn’t find anything to say. No one had been this upfront with me in a long time. It was hard for me to answer appropriately. Her acknowledgements just made me feel vulnerable and exposed. Even being a girlfriend of a Lappell member meant you were in their spotlight. There was no escape from anyone in this city.
“You look speechless. It’s OK. We are all family here. We protect each other. I know who you belong to. And frankly, I can understand why. You are a welcome addition.”
Still no words would come from my mouth. There was so many things that were wrong with her last statement, I didn’t know where to begin. Her head flicked up to the bouncer.
“Did you tell her what’s on the top level Clarence?”
The bouncer smirked, leaning up against the elevator doors. “I’d thought she would enjoy the surprise Lucille.” Her eyes formed tiny slits as she looked at the bouncer and then back to me. Finally I managed to find my voice. It had felt like a lifetime since I last spoke, having had to register so much crazy information in these last few minutes. It would take me weeks to dissect everything she said and what she meant, but for the time being I could only say, “Can I have my license back?”